


Lines of Communication

by Victorious56



Series: Clover Ebi: Ace Operative [2]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Asexual Character, Asexual Relationship, Asexuality, Developing Relationship, Light Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-06
Updated: 2020-06-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:41:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24557815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Victorious56/pseuds/Victorious56
Summary: Clover can't help fretting, which almost spoils a special day.I could be discontent and chase the rainbow's endI might win much more but lose all that is mine......'Cause you're the best thing that ever happened to meYou're the Best Thing - The Style Council
Relationships: Qrow Branwen/Clover Ebi
Series: Clover Ebi: Ace Operative [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1774993
Comments: 7
Kudos: 38





	Lines of Communication

**Author's Note:**

> After writing one fic for Qrow and Clover in an ace relationship, I kept thinking about them and how things might develop. I hope I've managed to get it right 🙂

"Do you realise, it's been six months?"

Qrow was lying on his front, head pillowed on his arms. He opened one drowsy eye to look at Clover, who was stroking his fingers though Qrow's untidy hair.

"I didn't. I rely on you to tell me these things." Qrow smirked at Clover's frown.

"What if I didn't, what would you do then?"

"Oh, probably just enjoy being with you for however long it was, and not worry about it. We can't all be military-grade precision and efficiency, you know."

Qrow propped himself up on his elbows, leaning over to kiss Clover on the cheek. He flopped down again, snuggling against the younger man and draping an arm across his chest. "Do you want to do something particular? To mark the six month milestone?"

"Mmm, that'd be nice. I'm not sure what, though. We'll have to think about it." Clover slid his arm under Qrow's shoulders, pulling him a little closer. "Actually, there was something else I was wondering..."

"Mmm?" Qrow didn't sound particularly interested.

"Whether... maybe we should try having sex?"

Qrow's hand ceased its lazy route up and down Clover's chest. He could feel the tension beneath his fingers.

"Why do you want to do that?" He tried to keep his voice light, resuming his tracing across Clover's skin, with no awareness of what he was doing.

"I... I want you to be happy, Qrow. I'm worried if we never— do it, you'll get tired of everything and—"

"Clover, are trying to make me angry for some reason?" Qrow squinted up at his face.

"No, no, of course not. It's just—"

"Well, stop being such an idiot, then. Have I said anything to make you think I would just leave, if we never have sex?"

"No, not really."

Qrow pushed himself into a sitting position. "Not really? So maybe a bit, you mean?"

Clover looked at him, his mouth turning down at the corners. "I just thought..."

"You are a wonderful person, and I love you dearly. But if you do have a fault, it's overthinking." Qrow relaxed his shoulders, trying to undo the tension he felt. "Are you happy? With us, with how things are?"

"Yes, very. But I want to be sure you are, too. I know you get... urges, more than I do. I don't want you to feel you're missing out, and go elsewhere for it." He rubbed at his eyes, as tears trickled down the sides of his face.

"Oh Clover, you fathead." Qrow leaned towards him and kissed the tears away.

"Hold on, _fathead_? That's a bit harsh."

"Well, honestly. I'm quite capable of looking after my urges without going anywhere else. You can't get rid of me that easily." He smiled at Clover, whose face still wore a frown.

"Honestly? Because if you wanted to try, I wouldn't mind." He swallowed hard.

"Hmm, I'm not entirely sure I believe that. But thank you for the offer. And maybe one day, who knows? At some point, it might happen, but it should be a natural thing, I think. Something that happens because it feels right at the time." Qrow took one of Clover's hands, raising it to his lips. "But I love you, you know. And that won't change. Even if we never have sex, I can't imagine I would stop loving you."

Clover sniffed, rubbing his nose with the back of his hand. "You're too good to me."

"Too right." Qrow dropped Clover's hand and began to tickle his stomach. Clover tried to bat his hands away, but Qrow was too quick for him. Before long the younger man was squirming to get away from Qrow, weeping with laughter this time. Qrow watched him slide off the bed, smiling at the sight, but with a small frown creasing his forehead.

❖

After much thought, they decided to go for a luxury spa day, at a smart hotel in Atlas. Qrow was initially unsure, but when he realised most of the day would consist of a relaxing massage, a relaxing sauna, and a relaxing jacuzzi, along with lunch and afternoon tea, he allowed himself to be persuaded.

"After all, it's not every day I get to celebrate the fact I'm dating the most gorgeous man in Atlas." He smiled at Clover's blushing face. The younger man still couldn't handle Qrow's compliments, even after six months.

"Although are you sure, Qrow? It's not exactly cheap."

"We don't really have much to spend our money on, what with accommodation and meals provided by the military. I've got more money now than I've ever had in my life." Qrow laughed, adding, "Just as well, Weiss keeps telling me I should save for my future."

Clover looked at Qrow. "What do you want for your future? Any idea?"

"That's a tough question this early in the morning. Not sure I want to be fighting Grimm until the end of my days... maybe get back into teaching, perhaps? I've not thought about it too much."

"Plenty of time for that, I guess... Anyway, we need to be off soon. Don't want to miss our massage."

❖

Qrow had to admit, the massage had been worth it. He hadn't felt so relaxed in forever, and now they were enjoying lunch before the afternoon sessions.

"The sauna, then a spell in the jacuzzi, and after that we can use the pool if we want." Clover pushed his plate away. "That was delicious."

"It was." Qrow was still feeling soporific after the massage. "Not sure I fancy a swim today. Too much like hard work."

"That's fine, we don't have to." Clover reached across the table to take Qrow's hand. "This is our treat, after all. No exertion required."

Qrow squeezed his hand. "It's been a lovely way to mark six months."

"If we get to a whole year, we'll have to come again. Or go one better, somehow."

"It's funny." Qrow's tone was thoughtful. "I've had a couple of relationships in the past that lasted longer than this. Not much longer," he conceded. "But we never celebrated in any way, not like this. Thank you." He looked at Clover, an expression on his face which made Clover's heart swell.

"Thank you, too. It's been a team effort."

"It has. Now then, are we ready for the sauna?" Qrow stood up and went round the table, taking Clover's hand to pull him to his feet. He reached up and pressed a kiss on the younger man's temple, and they headed out of the restaurant.

❖

After the sauna and the jacuzzi, they had afternoon tea on the terrace outside the restaurant. The stone building behind them reflected the warmth of the sun, and the subdued hum of conversation provided a calming backdrop to the tea and scones.

Qrow leaned back in his chair, stretching his legs out and sighing deeply. Clover finished his third scone, licking the crumbs from his lips with satisfaction.

"Clover." Qrow leant forward suddenly, his elbows on the table. "Shall we get married?"

Clover had been about to finish his cup of tea. He spluttered noisily, putting the cup back onto the saucer with a clatter. He looked at Qrow with wide eyes. "Are you— do you mean it?"

"It'd be a rotten thing to say, if I didn't. Of course I mean it. I love you, and I'd like to marry you. If you'd like that too."

"It's just a bit... out of the blue. I mean, I love you too, obviously. But—"

"Uh, that doesn't sound promising." Qrow wondered if he'd spoken too soon.

"It's something I was thinking about the other day. No, don't say anything." Clover could see Qrow was about to butt in. "It's just, you know, first of all there's being gay. So you're reducing the number of people you might form a relationship with. And then if you're ace as well, the number goes down again. So, when it comes to it, it's a small pool." He scratched his head. "I don't think I'm making my point very well here."

"So are you saying you're only with me because I happen to be here? That you think there could be someone better elsewhere?" Qrow felt a constriction in his chest. This wasn't how it was meant to go.

"No, that's not it. It came out all wrong, and now I've hurt you, and that's the last thing I want. Especially when we've had such a nice day." Clover pursed his lips, frowning. "I think what I mean is, do we end up just... settling? Because we haven't had the chance to meet such a wide variety of people?"

"Do you feel like you've _settled_ for me, then?" Qrow didn't understand where this had come from. _I just proposed to him, dammit_.

"Oh gods, Qrow, I've messed this up completely. It's just, when you read the books, it's all about meeting _the one_ , you know? And how do we ever know if someone is _the one_? Because there might be someone else you haven't met yet." He looked at Qrow's expressionless face.

Qrow stood up and pushed his chair back. "Shall we go?" His voice was quiet.

Clover stopped crumpling the napkin he'd been holding in his hands. "Okay."

They stepped down from the terrace, walking around to the front of the hotel. The route back to the barracks took them though a municipal park, busy with families enjoying the sunshine. Qrow felt no warmth in the day, as he glanced sideways at the other man. Clover was looking straight ahead, rubbing at his face intermittently.

Their path branched off through a quieter part of the park, with the occasional bench at the edge of the pathway. Qrow's steps slowed; he caught hold of Clover's arm. "Just stop a minute, okay?"

They came to a halt near one of the benches. "Let's sit down. We need to talk about this." Qrow didn't get it. _How did a lovely day turn into this? "_ Right. I'm sorry I brought up the idea of marriage, that's obviously something you weren't even considering."

Clover turned his face towards Qrow. His reddened eyes continued to leak tears, and his nose had started to run. "Clover, you look awful. Hold on a minute." Qrow rummaged in his bag and brought out a pack of tissues. "Here, let me."

He gently dried Clover's face, allowing him to blow his nose. After a few gulps, Clover spoke. "Qrow, I'm so sorry. Nothing about this is right."

"Well okay, let's try again. It seems to me that you're having... doubts about us? I hadn't realised, so tell me about it." He edged closer to Clover, taking a hand in his and holding it on his lap.

Clover swallowed again. "It's not doubts about _us_ , as such. You said the other day... I have a tendency to overthink. So when I started thinking about whether this was _it_ , if you were _the one_ , I started to question everything... Now I'm not sure of anything any more."

Qrow gripped his hand. "Are you happy? Well in general I mean, not at this exact moment."

Clover sniffed. "I am. I've never been happier."

"That sounds like a good start."

"But Qrow, how do I know? How can you _ever_ know?"

Qrow's brow furrowed. "You can't. No one can, not really. This has nothing to do with being gay, or ace, or whatever. Fact is, there is no way of knowing if the one you're with, who seems like your whole world, is _the one_. Because I think there are probably a number of people who could be _the one_. And you can't keep waiting to see who else might turn up. You might end up waiting for ever."

"So, we just settle?"

"No, absolutely not. But you have to look inside yourself. Picture how things could be with a person, decide if you like what you see. Be honest. If the picture isn't one you want for yourself, then you move on. If you like what you see, well, that's not settling. But you have to commit. You can't go on keeping an eye out, in case someone else comes along." He held Clover's hand tighter. "I don't know why I'm saying all this; I've had zero success with relationships so far. But that's how I know this one is for me. If it's not for you, though..."

"But it is, it is." Clover pressed his other hand to his mouth, almost gnawing at the knuckles. "Being with you, it's so _comfortable_. I don't mean that in a negative, boring way. I mean, it just feels right. Like when you've tried on countless pairs of shoes, and none of them are quite what you want, and then you get the pair that seem as if they were made to fit you exactly. That's what it feels like."

Qrow grinned. "I've never in my life been compared to a pair of shoes."

"Dammit, you know what I mean. Stop mocking me."

"Sorry, although not sorry." Qrow turned to face him. "Here's what will happen, then. Forget the marriage thing—"

"We don't have to."

"I think we should, for the moment at least. Blame it on the scones. I got carried away in the moment."

Clover looked at him in puzzlement. "Okaaaay..."

"We can agree that we're both happy with how things are?"

Clover nodded.

"So... we just carry on. And if either of us have doubts, or worries about anything, we say something. Don't just let it stew in our heads." He looked hard at Clover.

"I get the feeling you're aiming that at me."

"No, not at all," said Qrow airily.

"Hmm." Clover hadn't missed the tell-tale smirk on Qrow's face. "It would be justified, to be fair." He got to his feet. "I think I'd like a hug."

"Always happy to oblige." Qrow pushed himself off the bench, wrapping his arms around Clover and pulling him close. "I love you, you know."

Clover rested his forehead against Qrow's. "I know. And I love you back. I'm so sorry—"

"Uh, don't be." Qrow leaned back and studied Clover's face. "I'm glad you said something. Your timing was a little off, perhaps. But it's important to keep the comms channel open, right?"

Clover smiled. "We'll make a soldier of you yet."

"Don't you even try. However I see my future, that definitely isn't it." Qrow grinned at him. "Are we good now? Better, anyway?"

"Yeah, I think so." Clover kissed Qrow's forehead, holding the older man's face gently in his hands. "You are my sunshine, Qrow."

Qrow laughed out loud. "That's something I can guarantee has never, ever been said to me before."

"It's true for me, anyway." Clover hugged Qrow tightly. "Let's go back."

Qrow took his hand, and they made their way out of the park and back to the barracks.

❖

"I'm sorry that didn't go completely as planned." Clover slumped onto the sofa and kicked off his shoes.

"It was mostly really nice. But if you say sorry once more, I'm going to have to do something. It may involve tickling."

Clover looked up at him. "I actually quite like it when you tickle me."

"Dammit, it's not meant to be enjoyable." Qrow laughed as he sat himself on Clover's lap. "I need to think of some other form of punishment." He wriggled until he was comfortable, pressing his hands against Clover's shoulders. "Maybe this."

Clover looked into Qrow's eyes as the older man circled his hands against his chest. His hands reached around Qrow's waist, rubbing his back gently.

"Punishment is not your strong point, you know." Clover smiled as Qrow pouted at him.

"You could at least _pretend_ you're suffering."

"The worst thing you could do now would be to kiss me. That would be dreadful." Clover tried not to laugh.

"Ah, my secret weapon." Qrow bent his head, kissing Clover's hair before continuing down the side of his face. Clover closed his eyes, the wave of contentment almost too much. _How could I have thought this wasn't it? I adore him._ He opened his eyes and gazed at Qrow, who sat back a little.

"You spend quite a few nights a week here already, Qrow. Why not move in properly?" Clover knew as he said it, this was exactly what he wanted.

"Are— are you sure? After what you said earlier..."

"I'm not sure about marriage. Might never be, I don't know. But when you're here, it feels like home. Not just somewhere I happen to live."

Qrow regarded him for a moment, before turning himself sideways to sit across the other man's lap. "I think that's a very good idea. When can I fetch my stuff?" He hugged Clover closely as he spoke.

"Why not now?" Clover pushed him off. "Let's just do it."

"Man of action." Qrow laughed as he jumped to his feet.

❖

A couple of hours later, and Clover's usually neat quarters weren't quite so tidy. He looked around, hands on his hips and a frown on his face. "I wonder if there's actually room for this lot?"

Qrow circled his arms around Clover's waist, resting his face against the other man's back. "Sorry, I've messed up your place. I'm afraid this is how it'll be from now on."

Clover turned round to face him. "Gods, what have I got myself into?"

"I'm sure there'll be compensations. You can warm your cold feet on me every night from now on."

Clover kissed Qrow's mouth, pulling him close. After a long moment, he drew back. "I don't deserve you." His eyes were suspiciously bright.

"You deserve everything that's good. And me as well." Qrow kissed him once more. "Now, let's get things vaguely sorted, and we can go to bed."

**Author's Note:**

> Friendly comments always appreciated, thank you.


End file.
